ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The Penn State Altoona baseball team forced a game three in this week's Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference Tournament Quarterfinal best-of-three series, earning a split with Alfred State College on Monday afternoon in a pair of games played at Monroe Community College.

Alfred State (17-21), the fourth seed in the AMCC Tournament, rolled to an 8-1 win over the Lions in game one. But fifth seed Penn State Altoona (12-14) battled back in game two, using a ninth inning rally to come from behind and grab a 7-6 victory to keep its season afloat.

With Monday's split, the teams will square off in the decisive game three on Tuesday, May 11, with the location shifting back to Alfred State's Pioneer Field. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m., and the winner will continue on to the next round of the AMCC Tournament.

Game One: Alfred State 8, Penn State Altoona 1

Alfred State worked its way out to a 6-0 lead after four innings, en route to a seven-run victory in game one.

Timothy Richard (Douglassville, PA/Daniel Boone) went 2-for-3 for Penn State Altoona with a double and a triple. Grayson McClain (Mount Union, PA/Mount Union) was also 2-for-3 with a walk.

Kyle Glass (Imler, PA/Claysburg-Kimmel) went 1-for-3 with his team's lone run batted in, while Anthony Iannizzi (Leesburg, VA/Heritage) was 1-for-3 and scored his team's run.

Tyler Manger (Lindenhurst, NY/Lindenhurst) started on the mound for the Lions and was handed the loss. In 3 1/3 innings, he yielded six runs while recording four strikeouts. Hunter Johnson (Shippensburg, PA/Shippensburg) pitched 2 2/3 innings out of the bullpen, allowing two runs while striking out four.

The Pioneers scored the game's first run in the bottom of the first, when Brody Burdett's sacrifice fly to left scored Tim Holler to make it 1-0. Matteo Avallone's two-out RBI double in the third increased Alfred State's lead to 2-0.

The home team expanded its lead to 6-0 in the fourth. Owen Lansing and Mike Gibson hit back-to-back doubles down the left field line, with Lansing's double scoring one run and Gibson's two-bagger plating two more. Later in the frame, Sam Dickerson's RBI double upped Alfred State's advantage to six.

Penn State Altoona got a run across in the top of the fifth. Iannizzi reached on a single to shortstop with one out, then moved up to second on McClain's base hit to left. With two outs, Glass singled to center to drive in Iannizzi and make the score 6-1.

But Alfred State added two more runs to its lead in the bottom of the sixth on a two-run double from Dickerson, and the Pioneers secured game one by a seven-run margin.

Game Two: Penn State Altoona 7, Alfred State 6

A ninth inning rally propelled the Lions past Alfred State in game two. Penn State Altoona staved off elimination with the win, forcing a game three in the series tomorrow afternoon.

Catcher Cumming (Altoona, PA/Altoona) went 2-for-4 with a double, three runs scored, an RBI, and a walk. Jared Ennis (Richboro, PA/Council Rock South) was also 2-for-4 with a run scored and a walk.

Jake Hillard (State College, PA/State College) finished 2-for-5 with a double and three RBI, while Richard was 2-for-5 with a double and an RBI. McClain drew two walks, stole two bases, and scored two runs.

Glass got the start on the bump and recorded his team-leading sixth win of the season. In eight innings of work, the righty allowed five earned runs while striking out three. Sam Homan (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) tossed a scoreless ninth to pick up his first collegiate save, allowing one hit and striking out one batter.

In the bottom of the first inning, Alfred State picked up where it left off in game one, getting a two-run home run from Dickerson to establish a 2-0 lead.

Penn State Altoona responded with two runs in the top of the third to tie the score at 2-2. After McClain and Cumming had both reached on walks, Hillard's two-out single to center drove in both runners to even the score.

A wild pitch in the bottom of the third allowed Burdett to score from third base, giving the Pioneers a 3-2 lead.

But the Lions scratched out a run in the top of the fifth the tie things up again. McClain was hit by a pitch to lead off the frame, then he stole second before moving up to third on an Ennis single. Cumming's groundout to third brought McClain in to tie the game, 3-3.

Alfred State powered its way back in front in the bottom of the fifth. Avallone's solo home run to center put the home team back in the lead, and Josh Laurie's RBI double later in the inning made it 5-3.

The teams traded runs in the eighth. Cumming led off the top half of the inning with a double down the left field line, then scored when Hillard, the next batter, doubled to left-center. Alfred State got that run back in the bottom of the eighth on Holler's RBI double to left.

But, trailing 6-4 entering the ninth, Penn State Altoona staged a rally to keep its season alive. Glass and Ennis started the frame with back-to-back singles. After an Alfred State pitching change, Cumming singled to left and both base runners scored on an outfield error during the play, tying the score 6-6. One batter later, Richard doubled to center, driving in Cumming from second to put the Lions ahead 7-6.

The Pioneers threatened in the bottom of the ninth when Avallone led off with a double. But Homan struck out the next batter, then induced a pair of flyouts to end the inning and preserve the win.